The Game Boy: TF2's Spy and Cooking Mama Walk into a Bar...

What drives a perfectly sane person to become a videogame company's public relations manager? I can't quite be sure, but I'm willing to bet that whatever it is, it isn't pretty. The mission that -- again -- they choose to accept seems simple enough: deliver information into the eager hands of journalists and laygamers alike, in hopes of eventually building your game's hype-tower up to stratospheric levels. What's so wrong with that? Well, nothing, actually. But all it takes is one quick slip-up at the intersection between mission intention and mission execution to turn that colossal hype tower back into splinters and dust. Those things, for the uninitiated, do not typically mix well with the copious amounts of blood, sweat, and tears that go into game development.

Thus, toward the end of a game's hype cycle, we see little fiascos like the one well-respected journalist Tom Chick encountered with Sony's latest second-party effort, inFamous. Chick had received an early copy of the game for review purposes, and chose to divide his criticism into two separate lists: one praising the game's pioneering efforts in the field of electrically charged super heroics, and the other (gently) reaming the game for pilfering from the plot of Kids WB cartoon Static Shock, among other things. No review scores were assigned to either of Chick's lists, but his somewhat brutal -- though justified -- honesty was enough to send the PR machine into a tizzy. As a result, Sony canceled an interview between Chick and the game's developers.

The stunning plot twist? Chick reported Sony's little gaffe, as journalists occasionally do, and readers weren't too pleased with the publisher's Indian-giving antics. The site's comment section rang with cries of "Gerstmann-gate," the PR explosion between website GameSpot and publisher Eidos that resulted in the firing of Jeff Gerstmann, one of GameSpot's senior review staff, for assigning Eidos title Kane and Lynch a 6 out of 10 review score.

In the cases of both Sony and Eidos, publishers' fear of a tiny sprinkle of negative press on their longtime-in-coming hype parades caused them to, ironically enough, bring unnecessary negative press pouring down upon their games. And sure, on one hand, it's understandable -- hundreds of people whiled away years of their lives developing those games, putting millions of dollars and more than a few jobs at stake -- but that doesn't mean PR bully tactics and behind-the-curtain shenanigans are necessary. After all, it's better to fall gracefully than to look like a sore loser, right?

That's where recent PR endeavors by Valve and Cooking Mama publisher Majesco enter the picture. First up, you might remember Valve's recent "Meet the Spy" video. (If you don't, and your day is in severe need of brightening, definitely go check it out.) Here's the thing, though: That video, though undeniably a boon for the series it was promoting, was initially leaked. By Valve, no less, through an employee's goof-up on Youtube. And while such a tiny brush with imperfection might not seem like much, in the corporate world, it's enough to send your head rolling.

Valve, though, took the whole thing in stride, resulting in a hilarious fictional "hunt" for the employee who let the Spy's video slip onto the Internet undetected.

"Others of you have started a petition to stop Valve from firing anyone over the leak. Once again, this just goes to show you how valuable customer feedback is to us—we hadn't even thought of doing that, but once you see it there in print, it's a fantastic idea. I've been asking people all morning who was responsible and come up empty. But now that I've started firing people, they can't name names fast enough," wrote Valve's Robin Walker.

In a similar vein, Majesco has, on multiple occasions, stayed "in character" for its PR interactions involving casual culinary sensation Cooking Mama. Most recently, Mama herself stamped on the fingers of Activision's "Science Papa" as he attempted to ride on the coattails of her success.

"So you want some dirt on 'Science Papa' to splash on your site? I'll shovel it. We dated briefly (when he had much better hair). And now he clearly wants a piece of the best-selling pie by associating himself with an incredibly successful, and I'll emphasize, happily married, woman. Frankly, he never appreciated my cooking and I grew weary of his tedious 'experiments.' You want real mind-bending science, go figure out how to make Toulouse Cassoulet for your next dinner party of 20 and let me know how it goes, Papa," Cooking Mama allegedly wrote.

Both Valve and Majesco seem to realize a little something about the videogame industry that eludes other companies time and time again. That is, that videogames are a form of entertainment. PR and advertisement firms of the world, I implore you, watch and learn from these two examples. Cut the bulls**t and quit being so uptight. Other industries may appreciate your carefully managed attempts at making your product seem perfect, but we're talking about videogames in the age of blogs and websites here. People will point out what's wrong with your game. There's no avoiding it. Unlike back in print media's heyday, controlling the flow of information and vocally expressed opinion is impossible.

So, instead of pretending like you've got everything under control while gamers see right through your doublespeak, entertain us. If nothing else, leverage your game's characters, world, and attitudes to garner a bit of goodwill. Get input from your writing staff. Let the developers, the real brains behind the operation, say more than just a few canned, pullstring-activated "This game is so, so great" phrases.

Think about it: Even if your game is crap, at least you'll have made an actual human connection with potential buyers. See, great games are nice and all, but loyalty tends to develop fastest on a deeper level. In this industry, you're only as good as your last game. You'd be surprised, though, at what some real brand loyalty can do to get you over the hump in the event of a less than stellar title.

So come on PR/advertisement guys and gals -- don't be faceless robots. Dress in the garb of your game's world, loosen up a little, and get to know your audience. People worked hard to make the game you're promoting. Don't let their blood, sweat, and tears go to waste.

The Game Boy is the soapbox Nathan Grayson stands atop to pass down proclamations about the world of gaming. Installments are posted at least once per week. Also, Nathan's PC appears to be dying. Please keep it in your prayers or Satanic rituals or whatever it is you do.